Hands On: Canon’s Full Frame 6D & PowerShot G15

Canon is a company which has revealed most novelties at this year’s Photokina and even today, at the closure of the first day of the fair, it can be concluded that it has the most impressive exhibition of the show. Among previously announced models, like Canon’s first mirrorless called EOS M, the most interesting new models by this imaging giant are the EOS 6D, a ‘beginner’s full frame’ DSLR and the PowerShot G15, a jumbo compact from the legendary series (that replaces the PowerShot G12).

Canon’s new star, the EOS 6D

The Canon EOS 6D is a direct competitor to Nikon’s Photokina star product D600. It was announced that its price would also be identical – $2,100 for the camera body only. Compared to the Nikon model, presented last week, EOS 6D comes with built-in Wi-Fi (a special adapter needs to be purchased for D600), which means it can connect with smartphones and tablets with iOS and Android OS (with the installation of a free application), as well as Canon’s printers that offer Wi-Fi connectivity.

The device comes with a 20.2-mega pixel full-frame CMOS sensor, but what is impressive is that it is 20 per cent lighter than Canon’s similar model from the professional photographers’ class, the EOS 5D Mark III. Weighing 690 grams, it is in fact lighter than EOS 7D, with a smaller APS-C sensor. Despite this, it leaves the impression of weight and solidness when held and it features ISO from 100 to 102,400. It records Full HD video clips and includes a 3.2-inch back screen.

It is difficult to see how it acts during recording due to the difficult trade show conditions, but it may be that the EOS 6D is more practical for daily professional use than Nikon’s D600 does, especially because of the built-in Wi-Fi.

Critics of the 6D have moaned at the gimped autofocus engine, whose reliability we’ll have to wait and judge when we can get a model in for review.

The PowerShot G15, a worthy update

The same option of easy connectivity is one of the PowerShot G15’s biggest selling points (all new Canon models come with Wi-Fi, which is their main theme of this year’s Photokina). It has also lost a bit of weight and shrunk compared to its predecessor; it remains, however, one of the most massive compact cameras with a fixed lens.

The thing it has gained in relation to its predecessor is exceptional optics; the figures tell it all: f/1.8-2.8 with 28-140mm zoom. The photographs taken by PowerShot G12, which looked great in poor lighting conditions, will now have even more quality. I managed to see this for myself. The G15 recorded the crowd, the chaos and the dark pavilion of the Cologne photo fair sharply and quickly, and preserved the above average color range dynamics.

A 1/1.7-inch CMOS sensor and Canon’s DIGIC V processor are behind it all, which enable storing RAW photographs, recording FullHD video clips and taking photographs with ISO up to 12,800. Asking Canon heads why this device was not called PowerShot G13 was logical and the answer was predictable: 13 is an unlucky number in America and Europe, while 14 includes the number 4, which is an unlucky number in Japan. This is the same reason why PowerShot G4 was skipped. Be that as it may, this excellent compact camera, at first glance, will cost $500 USD and should be available sometime next month.